Tracy Watkins on Jacinda Ardern

Tracy Watkins, in her last column as Stuff’s political editor, on Jacinda Ardern:

As for Ardern, her legacy is still unfolding, and so far hers has been the most extraordinary story so far. Labour’s unprecedented, 11th-hour resurrection under her leadership; and her incredible international reach, set her apart from any other leader in recent times.

That presents huge opportunities – and big risks.

The opportunities lie in Ardern’s huge reservoir of political capital, and her supporters are looking to her to use that to lead a truly transformative government.

The risk lies in failing to deliver on those expectations, and they may be unrealistically high – not just domestically, but among her admirers globally.

It’s tempting to think that Ardern’s legacy is already written.

But politics moves so fast these days that crystal-ball gazing is turning into a mug’s game.

Despite the hissing and spitting at Kiwblog and Whale Oil, Ardern has shown some real leadership on some things, most notably the Christchurch mosque massacres, and her follow up in Paris this week.

But she does have to prove she can live up to her ‘transformative’ rhetoric and deliver some significant transformations this year, A lot is likely to depend on the budget due next week.

She will also be hoping some of her ministers learn enough and improve enough to start delivering more.

And she will be hoping that the scandal waiting to happen NZ First manage to survive the term not just without any major embarrassments, but also that they survive the next election.

And also that the Greens survive the next election.

Arden has done a lot well, most notably turning round a failing Labour around in the last election camp, and negotiating governing arrangements with NZ First and Greens.

She has done remarkably well, and still looks strong, but her fate as Prime Minister may be in the hands of her two support parties as much as anyone’s.

30 Comments

Corky

It would be a tragedy if Jacinda lost the next election. While I personally believe she and her government are on their way to wrecking the country, both politically and socially, the fact is National don’t deserve a sniff of the treasury benches. National has no vision. They practice pragmatic politics before any set of core moral principles – principles that should be opposing Labour at every opportunity.

Kitty Catkin

Kitty Catkin

David

Watkins is surprisingly blinkered as are most of the female gallery journalists, almost Mallard like in looking after a new Mum. I think Ardern is a lovely person and she did well over Christchurch but I think overall her and her cabinet have been pleasingly hopeless in being able to deliver anything.
We are seeing the mirror image of Trudeau and Obama and to a smaller degree Macron, popularity is fleeting when the substance doesnt match the halo.

harryk

By gum lad when we was kids we was too poor to own soup bowl we ‘ad to drink soup from shoe but did we complain nooo eee lad we was poor but honest except grandpa ‘e was right bastard an’ grandma did jig on table when Zulus speared ‘im …

Kitty Catkin

We didn’t ave owt like soup, sitha; we had to drink mud from a puddle if we wanted soup and wait for t’sun to warm it if we wanted hot. But we wor happy, we had nowt to complain of. Not like the nesh young ones t’day…ee, they don’t know they’re born, them lot.

Blazer

Zedd

Jacinda has at least tried to make a difference: cancelled Tax-cuts to Top 10% for a start, Stopped sell off; state houses, Winter energy pymts (beneficiaries), Med-cannabis & reeferendum & SOOOO much more to come 🙂

May I suggest, you actually stop all the negative vitriol Alan & just accept that Natl actually LOST the election.. NOW; Lab/NZF/Grns are ‘getting on with it’ rather than just a ‘talk-fest; as you claim 😦

Alan Wilkinson

Alan Wilkinson

@Z, the referendum is really just parking the issue but it’s a token. Let’s wait for the Budget on tax and see if she adjusts the bracket creep or just milks it. Housing is a horrible farce while they refuse to face facts. Most of the social indicators have got worse since she took office, not better but the media have abdicated their responsibility for holding her to account in favour of fawning over their pet Lefty.

Duker

“the media have abdicated their responsibility for holding her to account ”
The media s job is to sell ads to make money for shareholders, they sell eyeballs.
Stuff story today
“Young couple stay at parents when cant find rental’

Holding govt to account is opposition job. When did you think ‘holding to account’ was someones job outside parliament

Kitty Catkin

They have two large dogs and refuse to part with them. Dogs that size are expensive to keep and, of course, owners are reluctant to rent houses to people with large dogs. I would be.

There’s an excruciating piece about Clarke Gayford on the same page; fawning, admiring, totally boring. It wouldn’t even be interesting if one knew him. It ignores the fact that he spent four months as stay-at-home father before he went fishing again. It’s bum-crawling to say the least.

Kitty Catkin

And the youth camp scandal where Labour was shown to be allowing underage teenagers to have access to liquor with no adult supervision. Why was nobody charged with this ? It is against the law, after all.

Kitty Catkin

She'llBeRight!

Metaphorically, Ms Ardern is a cheerleader type of leader. Contrast the contribution of the team captain or the coach in terms of winning the game. She wins the crowd. But does this country need a cheerleader at the helm? Some people see strength in strategic skill, technical competence, team leadership as vitally important. They want a general, not a cheerleader who dances to the popular tune to raise the cheers on the sideline.